URBANE PREPS FOR SUNDAY'S BAYAKOA HANDICAP
Jan, Mace and Samantha Siegel's Urbane drilled four furlongs in :47, handily,
Wednesday morning in her final workout for Sunday's $100,000-added Bayakoa
Handicap (Gr. II).
Yvonne Azeff was aboard the 3-year-old Maryland-bred filly for trainer Randy Bradshaw.
"It couldn't have been any better. I got her galloping out the five furlongs in :59 flat," Bradshaw said of the work. "If she gets beat Sunday, it'll be because she gets outrun by a better horse, not because she isn't doing well.
"But it's a tough race," he added. "You almost feel like you should be running for $200,000."
Urbane has never finished worse than third in eight career starts. Her biggest victory was in the Grade I Ashland Stakes at Keeneland, and she has finished second in three Grade I events; losing by a nose and a head to Serena's Song in the Hollywood Starlet and the Santa Anita Oaks, and by a length-and-a-half to Gal In A Ruckus in the Kentucky Oaks. Urbane's overall ledger is 8-4-3-1--$503,003.
Bill M. Thomas' Klassy Kim, coming off a sharp score in the California Cup Distaff Handicap, was also on the main track Wednesday, working seven furlongs in 1:26 2/5, handily, for trainer Mel Stute.
Probables for the 14th running of the Bayakoa Handicap, to be contested at 1 1/16 miles on the main track: Urbane, Corey Nakatani, 120; Twice The Vice, Gary Stevens, 120; Pirate's Revenge, Chris Antley, 119; Klassy Kim, no rider, 117, and Ashtabula, no rider, 114
KINGDOM FOUND IN QUICK BLOWOUT FOR ON TRUST HANDICAP
Dilbeck Family Trust's Kingdom Found sharpened his speed for Saturday's
$100,000-added On Trust Handicap with a three furlong workout in :35 2/5, handily,
Wednesday at Hollywood Park.
Kingdom Found, who sat out the Cal Cup to wait for the On Trust, has raced just once in the last seven months. That one race was impressive, however, as he rallied to win a $55,000 allowance race by 3 1/2 lengths in 1:15 1/5 for 6 1/2 furlongs.
Other On Trust works Wednesday:
Probables for the 12th running of the On Trust Handicap, 7 1/2 furlongs on the main track: Kingdom Found, Alex Solis, 120; Goldigger's Dream, Chris McCarron, 118; Uncaged Fury, Eddie Delahoussaye, 118; Flying Sensation, Laffit Pincay Jr., 116; Argolid, Corey Nakatani, 115; Creston, no rider, 115; Flying Standby, Chris Antley, 114, and Desert Pirate, Pat Valenzuela, 113.
EXOTIC WOOD PASSES LATEST TEST, TIME TO THINK BIG
One of the sport's axioms maintains that it's unwise to get too excited when a
precocious thoroughbred wins its first couple of races impressively. The thoroughbred
graveyard, after all, is littered with one and two-race wonders who simply didn't improve
after beginning with such promise.
But perhaps the time has come to take Exotic Wood seriously. Sunday, she wired up an accomplished field of fillies and mares while scoring in a quick 1:21 flat for seven furlongs. That makes four wins in four starts for Martin and Pam Wygod's 3-year-old filly. What's more, the Kentucky-bred by Rahy out of J. D. Flowers has yet to be tested -- she's won by 5 1/2, 4, 4 1/2 and 5 lengths.
"It's getting to the point it's scary now," trainer Ron Ellis said following Exotic Wood's latest triumph. "She gets better and better, doesn't she? (And) she seems to get less and less tired each time against tougher and tougher horses.
"You just don't want to make the wrong move. It seems like I can only mess her up . . . I can't do anything to help her."
The next step will be the $125,000-added La Brea Stakes (Gr. II) Dec. 28 at Santa Anita. The seven furlong La Brea kicks off the La Canada Series, in which the races get increasingly longer. The second leg of the series -- the $125,000 El Encino Stakes (Gr. II) on Jan. 20 -- is 1 1/16 miles and will mark Exotic Wood's first race around two turns.
"Not at all," he said. "I've worked her a mile. I guarantee she can run long. Now, I don't know if she's better going long, but I guarantee she can run long. As far as I'm concerned, these seven-eighth races have been much easier than the six furlong ones on her. And, when I worked her a mile, I've never had a horse work like that, where every eighth was faster than the first ones."
Or, as regular rider Chris McCarron put it, "She's just a fast filly, plain and simple."
TURF FESTIVAL FIGURES STRONG
Handle at Hollywood Park's Autumn Meeting, excluding the 1987 Breeders' Cup, had
never reached $12-million on a single day prior to the 1995 Turf Festival.
Not only did Sunday's handle of $12,487,362 set an Autumn Meeting record (non-Breeders' Cup), it pushed the three-day Turf Festival average over the $12-million mark, an increase of 16.4% from the corresponding weekend a year ago.
Friday's opening Turf Festival card, held in the afternoon rather than the regular 7 p.m. Friday start, generated a handle of $12,136,008. Saturday's count was $11,680,889.
On-track figures were up significantly for the three-day Turf Festival. The on-track average handle of $3,093,853 was up 12.3% from 1994, while the on-track attendance average of 13,699 was up 15.7%.
FRUITION BLAZES WAY TO MAIDEN TRIUMPH
As if owners/breeders Martin and Pam Wygod haven't won enough races lately, they
unveiled another speedster in Saturday's seventh race.
Fruition, a first-time starter trained by Dan Hendricks, set splits of :22, :44 2/5 and :56 1/5 before coasting home unchallenged in 1:08 4/5. Fruition, ridden by Gary Stevens, paid $8 to win.
"I wasn't surprised he won," Hendricks said. "But I was surprised how he won. I've trained some multiple stakes winnners, and that was the most impressive first race ever by a horse that I've trained.
"His second quarter-mile was amazing," Hendricks added. "He was trying to look around at the crowd, the infield, everything -- that's why he wears blinkers and a shadow roll -- and at the same time he opened up about seven lengths. It was incredible."
A Kentucky-bred colt by Woodman out of the Danzig mare Winters' Love, Fruition, according to Hendricks, is bred to go long and is bred to relish the turf.
Hendricks, however, said he plans to take his time with Fruition, and doesn't plan to run the colt in the $500,000 Hollywood Futurity (Gr. I) on Dec. 17.
"That would be too pressing," he said. "It's just three weeks away and its a mile-and-a-sixteenth. We're in no rush."
The Running Horse (http://www.isd1.com/alauck)